Tri-Droid - TAC - Basic (08 05)

*The Tri-Droid technically made its first appearance in Tartakovky's Clone Wars.

Character Profile

Model

Tripodal assault droid

Status

Armored cavalry

Weapon of Choice

Variable, from blasters to artillery

Characteristic

Manufactured by the Techno Union

Infinitely scalable and highly versatile, tri-droids in various forms saw combat on a number of worlds during the Clone Wars. Most were sized to integrate seamlessly into the Droid Army ranks, but their efficiency of design allowed for even more massive versions that towered over the forces of the Republic.

Hasbro
is always good for throwing in a non-standard
action figure in the basic line here and there.
But when it came to one of the last waves of
figures in the 30
(77-07) line, we got two; the Mustafar
Panning Droid and this Tri-Droid. The Tri-Droid
is pretty atypical indeed, but it was a desired
action figure and Hasbro executed it with incredible
precision and authenticity that not many regular
action figures receive. One of the things about
this droid that perhaps many fans don’t
know is that it is named incorrectly. We pretty
much have a false sense of security with Hasbro
naming action figures properly, but they goofed
again here. This droid is actually the Octuptarra
Tri-Droid. (Editor’s Note: Yes, the large-sized Octuptarra
Droid that was released as a Walmart
exclusive is incorrectly named too and is actually
the true Tri-Droid.) Interestingly,
the droid’s
first appearance was in Tartakovsky’s Clone
Wars in Volume 2 Chapter 23 and
not in one of the Prequel films. How is that
for “retconning”? But these droids
did have a prominent role in the Battle of
Utapau and tried their hardest to defeat the
212th Attack Battalion under Clone
Commander Cody’s strong leadership.

The
Tri-Droid action figure is expertly crafted.
It comes unassembled in the package (which
is also bigger to house its bulbous body and
extremely long legs). Hasbro packed a great
deal of articulation into this figure. We lost
count but it has at least 17 points of completely
usable and important points of movement. You
can configure the droid in an array of positions
and it may just be one of the most versatile
action figures we have received. But due to
its size, we are prompted to consider this
toy even as a small vehicle. It completely
dwarfs all of the other figures in the wave
and it really has an impressive stature when
you display it fully drawn. The Tri-Droid has
a beautiful paint job! (Remember the days of
awesome paint jobs? Sigh….) The finest
of details are well painted and the colors
bring out the sculpted artwork on this figure’s
body. It is quite a sight to behold. If you’re
looking to build up your Battle on Utapau dioramas,
this figure is a must-have, but if you’re
not really a fan of the various Separatist
droids out there, then this may be a figure
that you’ll
want to skip. But we think
that would be a mistake. This is one awesome
droid and if you’re a droid fan, this
is a droid you’ll want to be looking
for.

Apparently
the figure was a great seller because Hasbro
quickly reissued it (again in a card back with
a bubble bigger than all other figures in the
line) in the 2008 TLC Saga
Legends line which also sold through
very quickly. Figures based on Star
Wars Episode III: Revenge
Of The Sith have
always been strong sellers and it makes sense
because Hasbro has made all of the action figures
based on this source very well. Hasbro hasn’t
been afraid to branch out from the norm and
take chances on characters that aren’t
humanoid in form. The Tri-Droid was certainly
a risky figure to make work in the basic figure
line, but we are thankful for Hasbro taking
a chance on it because it has been rewarding
in every sense of the word. It was great that
they forced this figure into the $6.99 price
point because you do really get a lot of sculpted
genius here for the cost of a standard basic
figure. Fans may want to know that a repainted
version of the Tri-Droid was
quickly issued in the Battle
On Mygeeto Battle Packs set (the
very last set in the 30
(77-07) line). We recommend getting
both because they are both unique and both
are excellent figures for your collections.
We hope Hasbro continues to takes these “risks” and
get more figures like this to us again in the
basic figure line. We wait with eager anticipation!